Foundations of Islamic Reason: Understanding the Ethical Dualism of the Koran

Part 4 of Series on the Foundations of Islam

Mike Scruggs 

Every chapter of the Koran begins with the subtitle: “In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful.”  This gives the initial impression that the Koran and Judeo-Christian Scripture have the same thematic message, but that would be wrong.They do address many of the same topics—creation, mankind’s relationship to his creator, his moral responsibilities, and salvation—but they are tied together quite differently with strongly contrasting themes of salvation and the nature of both man and God. Both Allah and Jehovah are all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-wise, but their dispositions toward mankind are strikingly different, especially with regard to the issue of salvation. The Koran declares the divine Trinity of Christianity to be hell-deserving blasphemy.  The Jesus of the Koran is only a prophet, not the divine Son of God, did not die on the cross, or save anyone from their sins. The Jesus of the Koran is, in fact, anti-Christian and will condemn Christians on the Day of Judgment.  The Koran confuses Mary the Mother of Jesus with Miriam, the sister of Moses. Several early dated chapters of the Koran reflect considerable Hebrew and some Christian moral influences and imitations mixed with Arab and probably Muhammad’s own influence.

Christians believe that the Bible is the infallible, inerrant, and authoritative Word of God, written by human authors divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit.  Muslims believe, however, that the Koran was written by Allah himself in heaven, is perfect in every word, and was revealed to his Prophet Muhammad through the Angel Gabriel over a period of 23 years. The first 13 years were recorded by Muhammad’s close associates in Mecca. The last 10 years were revealed and recorded after Muhammad had fled Mecca and had become a political leader and War Lord in Medina.

The Koran, although supposed to be perfect, contains many contradictions, where Allah apparently changes his mind. Muslim clerics allow this as his divine prerogative, but the Koran itself gives a rule to cover these contradictions and changes of mind. It is called the Rule of Abrogation, which is extremely important in interpreting the Koran.

Medinan Verse 2:106” “If We (Allah) abrogate a verse or cause it to be forgotten, We will replace it by a better one or one similar. Did you not know that Allah has power over all things?”

Whatever was said last is true, and the earlier verse is “abrogated” or cancelled.  But since the Koran has always been and always will be perfect, how can a verse be cancelled?   Rather than being cancelled, the earlier verse is given a lower status but still remains true. Thus we have a logical dualism, where two contradictory verses or passages of the Koran are both held to be true.  They are then used selectively according to the situation or circumstance. Note that the chapters of the Koran are not numbered chronologically, but by the longest chapters first.

The Meccan chapters are filled with verses condemning unbelievers (kafirs) to hell, while entreating them to conversion by peaceful means. Muhammad ran into strong religious and political opposition by three Jewish tribes in Medina. Thus the Medinan chapters resorted to force to convert unbelievers, offering the choice of conversion, humiliating subservience and unbearable taxes, or death, unless they could flee. As we have previously stated in an earlier part of this series, Muhammad had 800 Jewish prisoners of war beheaded in Medina for refusing to convert to Islam.  Their women and children were enslaved, the women also being used for sexual pleasure.  Taking sexual pleasure with non-Muslim captured women and girls became a traditional right of Jihad and Islamic dominance. Within about three years, all three Jewish tribes were slaughtered, enslaved, or driven out of Arabia.

Basically, all the “peaceful” verses of the Meccan chapters of the Koran have been abrogated by the Medinan verses. All the Jihadic verses for Holy War are in the Medinan chapters. Here is an example on so-called Muslim religious tolerance:
Meccan verse 50:45:

“We (Allah)  well know what they say. You (Muhammad) shall not use coercion (of religion) with them. Admonish with the Koran whoever fears my warning.”

Medinan verse  9:5:

“When the sacred months are over slay the idolaters wherever you find them. Arrest them, besiege them, and lie in ambush everywhere for them….”

Sixty-four percent of the text in the Koran is devoted to the treatment of unbelievers. Under Islamic dualism, kafirs (all non-Muslims or unbelievers) can be treated politely or cruelly according to the circumstance or inclination of the Muslim. Muslims may be friendly to non-Muslims, if advantageous, or non-Muslims can be robbed, brutalized, raped, enslaved, lied to, or killed according to Muslim advantage or in pursuit of Jihad and Muslim dominance. Non-Muslims are greatly inferior to Muslims according to the Koran, even lower than animals.  Thus in Islam, there is a strongly dualistic set of behavioral standards separating the treatment of Muslims and non-Muslims. This includes a double standard of truth, allowing Muslims to deceive non-Muslims to advance or defend Islam. This doctrine of Holy Deception is called Taqiyya, based on incidents in the life of Muhammad, according to Ibn Ishaq’s 762 AD biography of Muhammad.

Meccan verses of the Koran are used to deceive when Muslims are weak or are secretly preparing for Jihad. Medinan verses justify brutal coercion, sexual assault, atrocity, terrorism, and full scale Jihad to get their way, when they are strong.  Meccan verses are used to deceive the West that Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance, when actually Islam is among the most violent and intolerant ideologies.  In operational terms, Islam is much like Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals and Marxist and Nazi doctrines that consider whatever advances their ideology to be right and truth, and evil to be whatever opposes them. 

A prominent example of ethical dualism, although not yet recognized by its host-nation victims, is the epidemic of sexual assault and rape going on in European nations that have taken in large numbers of recent Muslim immigrants and refugees. This phenomenon owes much to the ethical dualism practiced by young Muslim males in regard to non-Muslim native women and girls. They have respect for their own Muslim women and customs but contempt for non-Muslim females and European customs. This is further aggravated by the feeling of young Muslim males in Europe that their migration to Europe is part of an informal but huge Jihadic front, which they view as having all the sexual entitlements of Jihad.

We must put a large part of the blame, however, on politically naïve European governments that have foolishly raised multiculturalism, diversity, and political correctness to the level of totalitarian idolatry. Furthermore, in so doing, they have lost the moral conscience and will to enforce the laws and systems of justice necessary to sustain a secure and just society. Unless they awaken to their danger and take strong steps to reverse their situation, they could suffer a fate similar to the Jews of Medina.